CANTON – The St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce has launched its February 2022 “Love Local” campaign to encourage county residents to continue supporting locally owned businesses year-round. The community can look forward to supporting the Love Local Gift Card Bonanza, by purchasing gift cards from multiple members in one spot, www.ShopSTLC.com, an e-commerce site launched by the Chamber in April 2020 as an immediate response to the pandemic.

The purchase of a gift card will be matched with a dollar to dollar grant to the business, thanks to sponsorship from Alcoa and NBT bank. $7,000 in grants will match gift card purchases, giving businesses an additional boost during Love Local month. The gift cards will go live on www.shopSTLC.com on Wednesday, Feb. 9.

Businesses across St. Lawrence County are feeling tremendous support in the first 48 hours of the St. Lawrence County Chamber's Love Local Gift Card Bonanza. Forty two gift cards have been purchased from the twenty seven member businesses participating in the program, amounting to $1,675 in sales in two short days. Those gift cards will be matched with a grant through the Chamber from generous sponsors NBT Bank and Alcoa who each contributed $3,500 to match the sales by customers, giving the businesses an extra boost.

"This is a chance for the community to step up and support local with their dollars. Every dollar counts, and right now those dollars count two times over" noted Ben Dixon, Executive Director of the St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce. To shop for multiple gift cards in one spot, go to www.ShopSTLC.com. The campaign goes until the end of February, however, the $7,000 match to businesses will end when the match is met by the community.

Last year, the Gift Card Bonanza was highly impactful: In just 10 days, 57 customers purchased 141 gift cards worth $5,775 from 18 local member businesses. $5,500 of the sales were matched by generous contributions from NBT Bank and Alcoa for a total local benefit to the participating businesses of $11,275. This year, the goal is to have a $14,000 impact with the generous support from Alcoa and NBT Bank, with $7,000 of a match available.

The program is a prime example of the power of local purchasing as a form of investment by local people in local businesses and their communities. Chamber Executive Director Ben Dixon noted the power of local purchasing as “a key means to building community pride, community self-reliance and a stronger local economy. Local purchasing keeps our dollars circulating within our economy as a ‘multiplier effect’ providing more stability to locally owned businesses and the jobs they provide.”

In addition to purchasing gift cards, the community is encouraged to ‘show love for local businesses’ by writing reviews, referring businesses, posting positive experiences on social media and shifting the every day dollar to as many local businesses as possible. The Chamber website www.VisitSTLC.com provides a robust business listing, as well as experiences to ‘Love Where You Live’ this winter and throughout the year.

Businesses interested in participating in Love Local month can contact the St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce at (315) 386-4000 or info@slcchamber.org. Participating businesses must be members of the St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce, but those who aren’t members may visit www.SLCChamber.org for membership information or contact the Chamber to sign up.